I really feel like we are carrying out the great commission. (How cool is that? Who gets to say that and really mean it? Wow.)
I can’t believe that this is my life. I can’t believe that I have the opportunity every day to change someone’s life. I have the opportunity every day to see healing. I have the opportunity every day to share God’s word.
We’re living in community, like the disciples. We are getting real. We are becoming vulnerable. We’re starting to crack that I-have-everything-together façade. We’re about to get into each other’s garbage and love unconditionally.
We’re traveling around from village to village, and soon country to country. We get to encounter real people with real problems. We get to plant and water seeds. We get to see life change and watch as people’s demeanor completely turns around when they encounter the life-giving love of Jesus.
Like Jesus, we are followed around by people with questions, people with needs. We are literally never alone. Even while climbing up the mountain yesterday, we were followed by 15 children. We started team time, and someone mentioned that we should look down. Sure enough, the WHOLE village was gathered at the entrance to the mountain and just staring. Melina put it in really great perspective for us. Sometimes, we feel overwhelmed with the amount of attention we’re getting. She said that while maybe our skin color attracts them to look at us, it’s Jesus in us that keeps them there standing and staring. We really aren’t that interesting. We just stand around in the market and a circle forms. I don’t think I would stand and stare at anyone unless they were trying to bring the attention on him or herself. But, they do stand and stare. Maybe they see something different and are attracted to the love of Jesus. That’s how Melina encouraged us to embrace it.
We have the opportunity in every direction we turn to either uplift or ruin. It seems like a lot of pressure, but Jesus carries us through. He helps us make decisions to give life and encourage one another.
We get to go to the poorest of the poor and the weakest of the weak. We get to do hands-on ministry through the power of prayer. We get to live the great commission. And we get to love like Jesus.
Side Note: I have a couple updates. The bug situation has gotten better. No, sadly, the bugs haven’t all died to make our lives easier, but, I think we’re just getting more used to it. Let me speak for myself. I allow flies to land anywhere on my body but my face, and I don’t swat them away. We’re also getting less bug bites as the time goes on. Another update is on health. On our team, we’ve been lucky and only 5 out of the 7 on the team have been sick. It hasn’t been anything too serious for any of us, just rashes, diarrhea, vomiting/not being able to keep food down, strange bug bites that multiply all over the skin, and allergy issues. A couple of girls from my team went to the hospital a few days ago to just check on what was going on. I went with them and boy, was it an experience. Very different from America. Not only cost ( it was only $4.50 to be seen and get medication), but also the way that they operate – not literally. We went to a room in the back where a doctor was sitting at a desk. Each patient went up and sat next to him. He asked her what was wrong and she told him then he took a brief look at it and wrote a prescription. No nurse and a quick process. Oh, and the medication for the rash for one girl and the bug bites for the other girl is the same medication. Riddle me that. It was quite the experience.
